Thirty years have given us a thick portfolio of Bonds — from Connery and Niven to Woody Allen and Timothy Dalton. But here are the five Bonds that endure:
DR. NO
The Ur-Bond, a film that, out of nowhere,
sparked the superspy craze. Ursula Andress plays Honey Ryder, still
the sexiest Bond bombshell, and Joseph Wiseman stars as the
rocket-tumbling scientist with the Teflon talons. The only 007 movie
in which 007 (Connery) sings (''Underneath the Mango Tree''). A
GOLDFINGER
A tubby tycoon (played by Gert Frobe) tries
to nuke Fort Knox. Introduces the best Bond gadget — that Aston Martin
with the nifty ejector seat. Some dated dialogue, though. Bond
(Connery again) on drinking improperly chilled champagne: ''It's like
listening to the Beatles without earmuffs.'' A-
THUNDERBALL
A chilling plot (SPECTRE steals two A-bombs), snazzy special effects
(the undersea scenes won an Oscar), and Connery in his prime (age 35)
make this the quintessential 007 film. Best Bond mot, delivered after
skewering a bad guy with a dart gun: ''I think he got the point.'' A
CASINO ROYALE
An over-the-top Bond spoof, with
David Niven as an aging 007 and Woody Allen as his evil nephew, Jimmy
Bond. Plus: that great swingin' '60s score by Burt Bacharach. B+
THE SPY WHO LOVED ME
The best of Roger Moore's
comic-book Bond movies, with the most cartoony special effects (dig
that crazy underwater city), campiest villains (introducing Richard
Kiel's metal-mouthed Jaws), and lamest double entendres (''Just
keeping the British end up, sir!''). B-
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